sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Share Posted May 3, 2019 Hello everyone. It's been a while since I posted a trip report, but I thought I would share my finds from yesterday. The rivers here in eastern North Carolina have been at un-collectible levels for the most part since last September when Hurricane Florence paid us a visit. Well, looking at the levels on the Tar for the last week or so, I saw a golden opportunity to hit the Tar right as the river dropped to a collectible level. And hopefully be the first one there! I had the day off and a fossil Buddy took a half day off of work. We hit a total of about 15 locations, all Rushmere member of the Pliocene Yorktown Formation. The first couple of spots we stopped at were a disappointment. Much of the upper cliff had slumped off and covered the fossil layers. But then things picked up. Here are the amazing finds! Great whites, I found the smaller of these two. My buddy found the larger. It is exactly 3 inches. Mine is a measly 2 1/4. Mine both sides after cleaning A mako I found, kind of beat up but the largest I have found from this area. more to come ................. 21 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 Possibly the nicest ecphora I have ever found. It was in red dirt, we rarely find ecphora in the red dirt. as found after cleaning more to come ............ 14 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 while cleaning this ecphora I found a nice little surprise inside .... and this is it, a tiny perfect Chesapecten. A beauty. 11.9 mm wide ans 11.3 mm long. more to come ......... 10 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 Next a gorgeous heart clam, Glossus fraternus. A double valver tooooo! more to come ........ 8 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 Then this beautiful clam. Margaritaria abrupta a nice little gastropod, Boreotrophon tetricus More to come ...... 9 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 This 5 gallon bucket full of Chesapectens ... all of my shark teeth, a fish vert, emmons fish teeth and some tilly bones. Also a really nice cookie from a dolphin vert. Looked for the vert but could not find it. I found about 20 more ecphora. Several double valve Chesapectens along with a bunch more goodies. All in all, a fairly good day. 5 Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilnut Posted May 3, 2019 Share Posted May 3, 2019 (edited) Superb Ecphora What a beauty! No pictures show for the Margaritaria or the bucket of Chesapectens. Now that I see the Nararitaria I agree it is beautiful. The picture makes it look like it has an aragonite interior? Love the other bivalve Glossus as well. Great finds and thanks for sharing. Edited May 3, 2019 by fossilnut added a question Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 3, 2019 Author Share Posted May 3, 2019 @fossilnut They should be there now. Had a glitch. By the way the Ecphora are E. quadricostata Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcbshark Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 That Ecphora is a real beaut Don! I'm pretty envious of your buddys GW too..... just WOW Every once in a great while it's not just a big rock down there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 You certainly had a great day! Those outcrops are a lot of fun; I wish I lived closer but I've only been there once when Ash took me out Do you know what those little cashew shaped things are on the plate in the last photo? Also do you know what the fish vertebra is from? Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brett Breakin' Rocks Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 1 hour ago, sixgill pete said: Great whites, I found the smaller of these two. My buddy found the larger. It is exactly 3 inches. Mine is a measly 2 1/4. Oh wow ... those are gorgeous.... One day I'll join that three inch club. The roots are always so fragile here on the river. These look like they have some perfect preservation. Congrats ! Cheers, Brett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Great report and finds, Don! Congratulations! Glad to see you getting out there. Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 4, 2019 Author Share Posted May 4, 2019 (edited) On 5/3/2019 at 8:33 PM, FossilDAWG said: You certainly had a great day! Those outcrops are a lot of fun; I wish I lived closer but I've only been there once when Ash took me out Do you know what those little cashew shaped things are on the plate in the last photo? Also do you know what the fish vertebra is from? Don Hi Don. Ash was who I was with. You should have seen him when he found that big GW. The cashew shaped things are the emmons fish teeth. As far as the vert I have never tried to ID them. But that shape is unique. You coming to the festival? Edited February 19, 2021 by sixgill pete Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 4, 2019 Author Share Posted May 4, 2019 8 hours ago, jcbshark said: That Ecphora is a real beaut Don! I'm pretty envious of your buddys GW too..... just WOW Thanks Jeff. That GW is definatly a head turner. Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 4, 2019 Author Share Posted May 4, 2019 8 hours ago, Brett Breakin' Rocks said: Oh wow ... those are gorgeous.... One day I'll join that three inch club. The roots are always so fragile here on the river. These look like they have some perfect preservation. Congrats ! Cheers, Brett Brett, those two teeth both look like they just fell out of the sharks mouth yesterday. Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 4, 2019 Author Share Posted May 4, 2019 6 hours ago, Fossildude19 said: Great report and finds, Don! Congratulations! Glad to see you getting out there. Thanks Tim. It was good to get back out to a river site. Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-fossils Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 That Margaritaria abrupta is one of the most gorgeous bivalves I've ever seen... and that's coming from a guy that's seen way too many shells already! Man what a beauty!!! One thing though... are you sure that the spelling is correct? I tried googling 'Margaritaria' and I only come up with plants Anyways, your other finds are incredible too! Wow! Congrats on a really successful hunt! Max Derème "I feel an echo of the lightning each time I find a fossil. [...] That is why I am a hunter: to feel that bolt of lightning every day." - Mary Anning >< Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier Instagram: @world_of_fossils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scylla Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 You must have been the first ones out there to have such wonderful success! Thanks for posting these. That ecphora is amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 I love the two-for-one deal with the tiny Chesapecten hiding within the stunning Ecphora - wow!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Dente Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Looks like a good trip. The river levels need to be lower before I’ll venture out. Too hard to paddle upstream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 2 hours ago, sixgill pete said: Hi Don. Ash was who Ok was with. You should have seen him when he found that big GW. The cashew shaped things are the emmons fish teeth. As far as ty he vert I have never tried to ID them. But that shape is unique. You coming to the festival? Thanks for the info! Unfortunately I miscalculated and so I have to be in Atlanta to pick my wife up at the airport Saturday evening (the 25th). Is there anything going on Friday (the 24th)? Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Very nice, congrats! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowboater Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Great finds and nice descriptions. My hunts "overlap" yours, but I don't think I have any true Great White or emmons teeth and have never seen the beautiful clam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
masonboro37 Posted May 4, 2019 Share Posted May 4, 2019 Awesome trip and finds Don! We need to go in a hunt soon! Process of identification "mistakes create wisdom". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted May 4, 2019 Author Share Posted May 4, 2019 4 hours ago, Al Dente said: Looks like a good trip. The river levels need to be lower before I’ll venture out. Too hard to paddle upstream. Eric, the current was still very strong. Thankfully we were in a jon boat with a 25 horse engine. The water had just dropped to 5 feet at the gauge we monitor. Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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